Method of assembling a mop



March 20, 1956 v. FRIE METHOD OF' ASSEMBLING A MOP Filed Jan. 27, 1953 R6 mm mf V -w m m V United States Patent METHOD F ASSEMBLING A MOP Vermont Frie, Clayton, N. J., assignor to Silver Chamberlin Company, Inc., Clayton, N. J., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application January 27, 1953, Serial No. 333,481 1 Claim. (Cl. 300-21) A purpose of the invention is to simplify and facilitate the gripping of mop strands, especially cellulose sponge strands, by the wire of a mop.

A further purpose is to avoid the tendency of the strands to cut or tear at the point Where they are clamped.

A further purpose is to create a tendency of the strands to double or form a U bend adjoining the clamp.

A further purpose is to extend the clamping plate, preferably of U cross section, with the reverse bend of the U toward the strands, and preferably provided with notches in the ends, across the strands from one edge to the other of the mass, and to pass a wire across the width of the strands in line with the middle or base of the U of the clamping plate on the opposite side of the strands from the clamping plate, to extend the wire around the edges of the mass of strands and preferably in the notches, to extend the wire along the middle of the clamping plate, preferably at the base of the U on the side remote from the strands and to extend the wire transversely to the clamping plate.

Further purposes appear in the specication and in the claim.

In the drawings I have chosen to illustrate one only of the numerous embodiments in which my invention may appear, selecting the form shown from the standpoint of convenience in illustration, satisfactory operation and clear demonstration of the principles involved.

Figure 1 is a fragmentary perspective of the mop head of the invention broken away at the ferrule which connects to the handle.

Figure 2 is a section of Figure l on the line 2 2 with the handle broken away.

Figure 3 is a section of Figure 2 on the line 3-3, breaking away the wire.

Figures 4, 5 and 6 are progressive fragmentary yperspectives showing the assembly of the mop.

Figure 7 is a fragmentary plan of the clamping plate.

Describing in illustration but not in limitation and referring to the drawings:

In many prior art mops diilculty has been encountered because the clamp for the mop strands either does not adequately hold them and they are allowed to pull out, or it applies so much holding pressure at such a concentrated area that the strands break or tear ott near the point of clamping. The present invention is designed to provide adequate clamping pressure for the strands without mutilating the strands, and to simplify, cheapen and improve the clamp mechanism and the way in which clamping pressure is obtained.

While the invention is applicable to floor mops using the well known cotton strands of the prior art, it is especially suited to cellulose sponge strands which are made by coating cotton thread or yarn with regenerated cellulose. f

The mop strands form a mass of aligned strands which are reversely bent or doubled back on themselves at 21 as in common brackets. A wire 22 has a wire portion 23 extending across the width of the mass of strands inside the reverse bend 21. The wire along with the other metallic parts may be made of steel, aluminum, copper base alloy, a magnesium base alloy or other structural metal as preferred. At the edges of the mass of strands the wire bends toward the outside of the reverse bend to form end stretches 24 best seen in Figures 1, 2 and 6.

On the outside of the reverse bend of the strands, and in line with the wire portion 23 inside the reverse bend, is' a clamping plate 25 which extends across the mass of strands from one edge to the other and presses or grips the strands between the clamping plate and the Wire p0rtion 23. As best seen in Figures 2 and 4, the clamping plate is of U cross section with the reverse bend of the U directed towards the strands, so that the base 26 of the U corresponds with the middle and runs parallel to the wire portion 23.

The arms 27 of the U engage the strands near the ends of the arms and have reversely tilleted portions 28 which protect the strands from any sharp or raw edges on the clamping plate. Thus as seen in Figure 2, the strands are gripped between the spaced contact points .of the arms 27 of the U at the top and the portion 23 ofl the wire at the bottom, tending to hold the strands in their reverse bend form.

The clamping plate at its ends has notches 30 into i which the edge portions 24 of the wire tit.

The wire is bent over the ends of the clamping plate and has portions 31 on the side of the clamping plate, remote from the strands, which converge toward one another and follow the middle, ridge or base of the U of the clamping plate. tions 32 which are bent and extend outwardly from the clamping plate transversely thereto in spaced relation from one another.

The handle 33 carries a suitable metallic ferrule 34 which is provided at Yits end toward the mop with a clamp 35 having forward jaws 36 and side jaws 37 at each side. The forward jaws 36 grip the portions 31 of the wire which extend along the clamping plate on the side remote from the strands. The side jaws 37 respectively grip the portions 32 of the wire which extend transversely to the clamping plate and away from the strands. Thus the wire cannot shift toward or away from the handle, laterally or angularly. A bolt and thumb nut combination 38 holds together the jaws, which desirably consis. of a plate 40 carrying one of the forward jaws and one of each of the side jaws, cooperating with mating jaws at the front and sides formed from the ferrule.

The relation of the side jaws with outer wire portions 32 is best seen in Figure 3.

In assembling the mop, the wire is stretched with its portion 23 in horizontal position and the mass of strands is doubled over the wire. For convenience the other bends can be prebent except for the bend that places the wire portions 31 against the clamping plate. Thus as seen in Figure 4, the wire may at this time have the shape of a double crank. The clamping plate 25 is then placed across the strands on the outside of the reverse bend with its middle or base of the U in line with the wire portion 23, and the reverse bend of the U toward the strands as best seen in Figure 5. In this position, the wire edge portions 24 extend into the notches 30 at the ends of the clamping plate.

The next step, as seen in Figure 6, is to bend the wire portions 31 down against the clamping plate. This bending tends to pull the wire portion 23 toward the clamping plate, due to the leverage exerted by the wire portions 31 as they bend, thus gripping the strands between the wire and the clamping plate. The mop head as shown in Figure 6 can be sold in this form, or can be attached to a clamp as shown in Figures l, 2 and 3.

Patented Mar. 20, 1956 Near the ends, the wire has por-V In operation, the components are assembled to make up-the^mop"head inthe-mannershown'in'FiguresAfSand" 6. The mop head is then :clamped to the handle by loosening the bolt and thumb" screw combination 38,.in

serting the wire end portions 321pwardlyin the loosened sideclamps andinsertingthe wire portions V31"`in Vthe loosenedforward'jaws: Theboltand thumbscrew combination'is thenl tightened."

lf` at any' time it'is `desired to `replace the strands, the clampcanbe loosened vand 4the clamping plate taken o" by the reverse procedure, of the assembly shown in Figures 4, 5 "and-'6.' Newstrandslcanbe inserted and the` wireagainbent'down-toengagethe^new strands between the wireandthe clamping pla'te;

Inviewof my invention' and disclosure variations and willdoubtlessbecome evidenttoothers skilled in the art, toobtain'allor part of the benefits of my invention withf out copyingdhe-meth'od shown; andI, therefore, claim all sucirinsofar as they fall'within-the"reasonable spirit and scope of my claim.

Having thus 'describedmyinventiom what I claim. as ncw-and ide'sire to secureby-Letters `Patent is:

The method of gripping'the'strands in a mop, using Va wire-and an elongated clamping Vplate having notches at 415 modifications to meetindividual whim or particular` need the ends and having in cross section a reverse bend in the rniddtewlnd're'verse'ly'lletedredgeswoneithel' side ofthe thezendszof 'theiclznrqzng:plater andrbending the ends of wire aronndi'and in contact witlithe ends of.the^clamping plate in the notches, thereby gripping the strandsbetweenrtheewi-reandzme clamping u,platteland holding'the strands in the reverse bend of the clamping plate due to the leverage pushing'down'on the-clamping plate when the wire bends over the ends.

References Cited inthe file ,oithis patent UNITED 'STA-TES; PATENTS 269,746 Tyler Dec.'26;1882 949,679Y Kenneyj. Feb.' 15,* 1910 1,092,770" Humphriesn Apr. 7, 1914 2,626,4154 ISogel Jan. 27,' 1953 

